Battle of Arrogance
by Immortal42
Summary: Jace might have met someone just as arrogant as he is. Set after CoG and before CoFA.
1. stunningly good looks

**_Disclaimer: I do not owwn Mortal Instruments. :( Sad, really. But I'll have to live with it. Unless someone knows how to make me into Cassandra Clare?_**

**_A/N: Jaze & Aspen started out as characters from Fate (read it if you haven't; it's good), James & Bailey, but then I realized James is nothing like Jace, so it didn't work. But it works now, having completely made up characters. 'Kay, I'll let you read now._**

"Jace!" I called to the silhouette of the golden haired boy. "Jace, where did you- oh." The boy turned around, laughing, with eyes that were not the beautiful ones I loved so much.

"Close," he said. "But it's Jaze" He had the same golden hair as Jace, but his eyes were green, not gold. He had the same other-worldliness as Jace, but Jace's came from experience. This boy's, Jaze's I guess, seemed fake. He and Jace shared the sarcasm, but Jace was much better at it.

"Jaze," I repeated. "I'm sorry."

"What for?" he asked.

"What for what?" a voice said behind me. I whirled around; making sure it was actually Jace this time.

"Jace I'm guessing?" Jaze asked. Jace nodded, confused. "I see how I could be mistaken for you."

"Oh, Clary wouldn't mistake anyone for me. She knows my stunningly good looks much too well."

"Hmm, stunningly good looks?" Jaze asked. Before he could add anything, a girl came up behind him.

"Who has stunningly good looks?" she asked.

"I do," Jace and Jaze replied at the same time.

"And who are you?" she asked Jace. Apparently she knew Jaze already.

"Jace, of course. You poor thing, not knowing who I am."

"Aspen, be careful. He's almost as humble as I am." Jaze said, and the girl (Aspen?) tried to hold back a smile.

**__****_Okay, okay, I know Jaze isn't as conceited as Jace is... yet! Jaze's arrogance will match Jace's, though! Promise._**


	2. many splendid lines

_**Disclaimer: Do you think I'd be on FanFic if I owned MI? Well, I wouldn't.**_

"You? Humble?" She said.

"Oh, yes. Just another one of my awesome qualities."

"Great demonstration of your humbleness." I said, sarcasm dripping.

"Thank you." Jaze replied. I rolled my eyes. I was used to people ignoring my sarcasm; Jace did it all the time.

As if reading my mind, Jace told Jaze, "Hey, ignoring Clary's sarcasm is my thing."

"Really? Because I ignore everyone's sarcasm, and I think that makes it my thing. Besides, anything I do is the right thing to do."

Jace narrowed his eyes. "That's my line! Well, one of many. Which are splendid, might I say."

Aspen glanced at me, wondering if Jace was going to go off any minute. Apparently, Jaze did this, too. I guess they're a lot alike.

"Um, Jaze, do you think we should go?" she asked. We were at the park, looking for demons when Jace had walked off. That's why there were random people talking to us. They seemed a lot like us. It was kind of weird.

"No," Jaze said. "It's okay." But I could tell that Aspen knew this was going nowhere good. I could tell, too, and I could tell I'd have to step in.

"Jace, there are obviously no…" I almost said 'demons', but stopped myself. "…none of what we wanted here. We should go home."

"Why?" Jace asked.

"Well, we're not being very productive here." I slipped my hand into his.

Jace sighed. "Fine." Aspen gave me a grateful look; I nodded so small you almost couldn't see it.

_**You guys are awesome! Especially if you review! Then you're super awesome! And being super awesome is, well, super awesome. So review!**_


	3. remarkable

**_I don't own the series. _**

When we got back to the institute, we went to Jace's room. The blankness surprised me every time, even though I'd been in there a million we left, it was only because we were hungry. Walking into the kitchen, we spotted Isabelle at the stove. "Where's the menu for that new Chinese restaurant?" Jace immediately asked.

Isabelle glared. "I am going to throw something at you, Jace Lightwood!" By now, that was the acceptable thing to call him. And, in all ways that count, he was a Lightwood. "By the way Clary, have you thought about my idea for, like, a cooking rune, or maybe something that would just make people think my food tastes good?"

I laughed. "Izzy, I don't see how that would help with any Clave-type matters."  
"What if they ask me to cook a feast for the signing of the Accords, or something?"

Jace snorted. "Right. That'll happen." Isabelle glared at him again. "Aha! Found it! Clary what do you want?"

I looked at Izzy apologetically before replying. She turned off the stove and sat down at the table with a dramatic sigh. "Get me something, too." She told Jace gloomily. Then, she perked up. "Hey, have you guys met the new shadowhunters staying here? They're really cool! You'll like them!"We shook our heads. Izzy got up and yelled something I couldn't understand down the hall. "They're coming, now."

Two minutes later, Jace abruptly got up from his seat. "Jaze."

"Oh, you've met?"

"Yeah." Jaze said. "He thinks he's so great."

"I am. But you…"

Aspen came to stand near me, and said hi. I'd forgotten about her. I waved, but not with meaning. I was a bit… worried. About Jace. Having someone around whose arrogance matched his wasn't something he was used to. If Jaze and Aspen were staying here, things wouldn't turn out very well.

"I am remarkable." Jaze said, mock offended. Though, it seemed to be only half-mock.

Then Simon walked in. "AGH! Two Jaces!"

"I'm not Jace. I'm Jaze. I'm better than him."

"So far, you seem the same as him to me."

_**Okay, I want to cry right now. Still only 3 reviews. :( If it was good enough to read this far it must be worth reviewing, right? RIGHT? :( Please? Because if you don't, I'm not updating. **_


	4. author's note

**I hate to do this to you, because I know I hate it when people put author's notes as chapters. I get all excited that people updated, and then I find out it's only an author's note and I get all sad. But I feel as though I have no choice. Why? Because everyone who reads this is an amazing person whom I'm eternally grateful to, and you people REALLY deserve an update, but...**

**I have no idea where to go with this story! :( I need ideas. I don't even care if it's way out there. I want to update so badly, but I've got awful writers block. Please help!**

**I promise to update as soon as I can!**

**Thank you all!**


	5. genius

_**Disclaimer: The characters weren't my idea, okay?**_

As you can probably guess, Jace and Jaze stopped talking shortly after, and we all ate in an awkward silence. The rest of that day was uneventful.

The next day looked to be much the same. Until Jaze walked into the middle of one of my training sessions. Luckily, Isabelle was training me that day. (Jace, Izzy, and Alec all took turns training me.) "Hi, Jaze," Isabelle said perkily.

"Where is Jace?" He replied, not really bothering to acknowledge us.

"In the weapons room. Why do-" I broke off when he slammed the door. "Izzy," I began, turning to her. "Are we almost-"

"Go save your boyfriend form Jaze," she told me, smirking.

"I was more thinking I'd need to save Jaze from my boyfriend," I muttered, sprinting toward the door.

Two minutes later, I was bursting through the door of the weapons room, ready to put a stop to whatever was going on in there. I skidded to a halt at the sight of two blonde haired boys, acting like they were the best of friends.

"Here," I heard Jace say, "you can use this seraph blade."

"Thanks," replied Jaze.

"What else do you need?"

"Uh, I think I'm set."

I couldn't take it anymore. "Um, what's going on here?"

Jace turned to me with a warm smile. "We're going to go hunt some demons."

Just like that it all clicked into place; I started to clap.

And that is the scene Aspen walked in on. Jace and Jaze, standing side by side, looking extremely confused, and me, clapping as if they'd just put on the performance of they're lives. "Um, what's going on here?" she asked, somehow managing to repeat my earlier inquiry verbatim.

"Those two," I began, pointing to the boys, "are best friends now."

Aspen looked to them for a contradiction; they gave none. "What?"

"Or," I amended, "they want us to think they're best friends so we'll let them go demon hunting together."

Jaze immediately turned on Jace. "I told you it wouldn't work, you idiot!"

"I'm the idiot? It was your idea, moron!"

"Maybe it was, but I told you they'd stop us if we told them we were demon hunting!"

"How else would you explain the exchange of weapons?"

"We didn't have to exchange weapons, genius-"

"Thank you."

Jaze muttered something unintelligible under his breath before continuing. "We could've pretended to be friends some other way."

I picked up a dagger from the table next to me and threw it so that it stuck in the wall right between their heads. They went quiet, and I silently thanked my however many weeks of training. "We would've figured it out no matter what," I informed them. Aspen nodded in agreement.

"Great, no demon hunting for us, then," Jaze muttered.

"No, no," Aspen said, "you're still going demon hunting. We're just going with you."

I grinned. Aspen and I thought alike, apparently. "And," I added, "we're going to make sure you learn to get along."

**Okay, here's why it's been so long since I've updated. I'm stuck again. I had a really good idea the other day, and I was writing it, then I looked at the clock and it was really late and I had to get up the next morning, so I had to make myself stop writing. And now I don't remember where I was going with it. Anyway, the point is, I can either post what I have written right now -in which case I can have it up tomorrow- or I can try to make the chapter less... sad-excuse-for-a-chapter-y -in which case it'll take me another week or two. It's up to all you amazing people that are reading this. **


	6. easy enough

**_Disclaimer: All my life, I've never once been called Cassandra, let alone Cassandra Clare. So, I'm guessing that means I'm not Cassandra Clare, right?_**

**_A/N: I do apologize for taking so long to update, but I'm not going to bore you with the details. If you want to know why it took me so long, review or PM me. _**

So, two hours later, four teenagers were headed out for some demon hunting. The boys were glaring at each other like there was no tomorrow. Aspen stepped in between them. "Now, boys," she said. "Let's all try to get along." They spared a glare for her, then went back to glowering at each other.

"Jace," I tried, "come on, at least make an effort." I saw hesitation flicker on his face, then I could tell he had a light bulb moment.

"Jaze, we should try to get along," he told the other boy.

"Never," Jaze retorted.

Jace looked at me with innocence plastered on his visage. "I tried, Clary," he told me. He was glaring at Jaze again before I could even blink. I sighed. This was going to be a long evening.

* * *

"I got this one," Jaze claimed.

"Yeah, you've got it about as much as you've got charisma. Not at all."

* * *

"I can protect them," Jace offered. "You can kill the demon. Oh, wait, no you can't. I'll have to kill it and protect them. Easy enough." He ducked and the seraph blade that was thrown by Jaze missed him my about an inch.

* * *

"Maybe we should go somewhere else," Jace suggested.

"Why, the demons here are too hard for you?" Jaze retorted.

That was the last straw for me, and by glancing at Aspen, I could tell she was over their petty taunts, too.

"You know what?" I practically yelled. "You two are acting like demons right now! Just stop, okay? What do you have to prove?"

"I don't have to prove anything, Clare, I just don't like this incompetent mundie-disguised-as-a-shadowhunter putting you in danger!"

"I don't need protecting, Jace-" I started.

"And you're a thousand times more incompetent than I am!" Jaze cut in.

I just shook my head and continued as if Jaze had never spoken. "You know I don't. That's just an excuse."

"I know you can hold your own in a fight, but when there's someone holding us back," he shot a meaningful glance at Jaze, "it's so much harder."

I sighed and looked to Aspen. "Try talking to Jaze," I told her, probably sounding as resigned as I felt.

But she apparently had other ideas. She pulled me aside. "What if we tried acting like them, but even more over the top? Then they'll either see how annoying it is-"

"Which is about as unlikely as snow in July," I muttered under my breath.

"-or," she continued, not hearing me, "we'll be acting so stupid that we'll put ourselves in danger and they'll have to work together to save us."

And that gave me an idea. "Or," I countered with a gleam in my eye, "we could just put ourselves in danger without having to act like them."

**Yay! I think this is my longest chapter yet! (Isn't it?) ****Oh, and some of you might be happy to know that I actually mostly know where I'm going with this story now! It's about time, right?**

**'Kay, here is where I usually have a long plea for reviews, but you know the drill by now. Click the button, type your comments, hit submit, blah, blah, blah...**


	7. amazingly wonderful

**_Disclaimer: Jace and Clary: not my idea, no matter how much I wish they were. Jaze and Aspen: my idea, though they can't compare to Clare's characters. _**

She looked at me suspiciously. "What do you mean?"

"Okay, let me rephrase. We could just put ourselves in 'danger' without having to act like them."

"Clary, come on, we've got to kill more demons," Jace interrupted, sounding like a five year old.

I sighed, rolled my eyes, and gave Aspen a look that said I'd explain more later. Of course, the rest of the night went pretty much the same way, with Jace and Jaze being complete jerks to each other and Aspen and I about ready to pull our hair out because of it. Probably the only thing that kept us from being bald by morning was the reassurance of our plan.

When we got back to the Institute, I got Simon, Izzy, Alec and Magnus involved in our plan. There was no other way it would work. Then, the next day, it was ready to be put into action.

* * *

We woke up bright and early and immediately went to wake the boys. "Jace," I said in a sing-song voice, "it's time to get up."

"What time is it?" he replied groggily, but I could tell he was happy it was me that was waking him.

"Six o'clock."

"Why are you up so early?"

"Because, we have a long day."

He sat up. "We have a long day?" he said, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, Jace, we do. You, me, Aspen and Jaze have a long day."

"I'm out. I'd rather eat Isabelle's cooking."

I made a face. "No, you wouldn't. If I recall correctly, you're the one that said pasta could be fatal if she cooked it."

He sighed. "Yes, but I still don't want to spend a whole day with him." He looked like he'd eaten a lemon when he said the last word.

"Come on, Jace, please? I'd be really happy if you came." I whined, knowing that if I played the it'd-make-me-happy card, I'd win.

Sure enough, he agreed, "Okay, but only for you."

We made our way to the kitchen, where Isabelle was waiting. "Good morning," she greeted, sounding as chipper as ever. "I made eggs."

"I'm not hungry, Iz," claimed Jace, barely managing to slam the refrigerator door before she turned around. He sat down at the table with a sigh.

Izzy followed suit and said casually, "So, what are you two doing today?"

"Clary's making me spend a whole day with-"

"With Jaze and Aspen," I cut in, before he could say something horrible.

Isabelle chuckled and was about to comment when Jaze and Aspen came in. I smiled warmly and waved, and they smiled back. As you can probably guess, Jaze quickly followed up his smile with a death-glare for Jace. Jace practically shot tiny painful shards of ice out of his eyes in response.

"So," Jace asked, "when are we leaving?" He glanced between Aspen and I for an answer.

"Leaving for what?" Jaze asked, picking up on the fact that Jace wasn't talking to just me.

"You didn't tell him yet?" I asked Aspen, in shock. We'd agreed to tell them first thing when they got up.

She shrugged apologetically. "I didn't get the chance. Sorry."

"Tell me what?" he asked through gritted teeth.

I could tell that Jace was obviously enjoying this. "What?" he asked. "You didn't know that we're gonna spend all day together? I can't wait, can you?"

Jaze just glared for a moment, then, as he discerned what Jace had said, he turned to Aspen. "What did that say?"

She held back a laugh as she explained, "Clary and I thought that it might help you get along, since the last thing we tried didn't work."

"Never," they said in unison, then glared at each other for saying anything in unison. If it hadn't been so sad, it would've been immensely funny.

"It's worth a shot," Aspen replied. "Besides, it would make me really happy."

Jaze looked like he was having an internal battle, then said, "Okay, but only for you."

Jace glared. "There you go, stealing my lines again!"

"Yes, I'm purposefully stealing your lines because you're just so amazingly wonderful," Jaze retorted, going a little over the top with the sarcasm.

"Now you're finally getting it! I am amazingly wonderful!"

_I really hope this works_, I thought, rolling my eyes.

**'Kay, people, if you don't review, I don't update. So, tell me your thoughts. (On my story, though you can also tell me your thoughts on bananas, if you want.)**


	8. fearless

**_Disclaimer: If I were to choose a pen name, I wouldn't choose Cassandra Clare. You know why? 'Cause that pen name is a lready taken._**

After half an hour, we were gathered at the door to the institute, discussing what we were going to do that day, even though Aspen and I already had that planned. If we ended up doing anything different, I'd have to call Simon.

"So," Jace demanded, "you mean to tell me that you've planned for us to spend the whole day together, but you don't even know exactly what we're doing?"

I glanced at Aspen. "Well, we had some ideas…"

"Like…?"

"We could… go to an amusement park."

Neither Jace nor Jaze could come up with a reasonable argument against that, so that's where we went.

"What do you want to ride first?" I asked Jace when we got there.

"You choose. I'm fearless," he said with a cocky grin.

"How about that one?" I pointed to the biggest rollercoaster I could see.

Jace shrugged. "Sure."

He screamed like a little girl. I bet you can't picture it, can you? Well, it was hilarious.

Anyway, as according to plan, Aspen and I took them on rides without letting them eat, until they got really hungry. It didn't take long. "Clary," Jace said, sounding slightly whiney. "I really need to eat."

"I hate to agree with stupid over there, but he's right, Aspen. We gotta eat something," Jaze added.

Aspen and I shared a look. "Okay," I told Jace. "but we're going on another ride. Meet you back here in half an hour." And we were gone before they could argue.

**Yes, I know, this chapter is agonzingly short**


	9. brilliant ideas

**_Disclaimer: Somehow, I doubt Cassandra Clare writes in a blue spiral notebook. More proof that I'm not her._**

Panting, we showed up outside the amusement park two minutes later, where Magnus was waiting not so patiently. "What took you so long?"

"Sorry, it was hard to get them to be hungry enough to let us leave." I gave him an apologetic look.

He sighed dramatically. "I suppose it's fine. We should hurry."

About seventeen minutes later we found ourselves in a place I'd never seen before. It was a large room, about the size of a tennis court. The ceiling looked to be about ten feet above the floor. The floor was wooden and the walls were a bright purple. Modern looking lights hung from the ceiling. "Uh, Magnus," I asked, "where are we?"

Aspen breathed a mock sigh of relief. "Oh, good, I thought I was the only one that was confused."

"We're at my other apartment. I have a few. I am the High Warlock of Brooklyn, you know," Magnus replied, rolling his eyes.

"But… it's empty."

"I know. I haven't used it in decades."

I sighed. "Magnus, we might be staying here for up to a month!"

Aspen gave me a startled look. "You really think it'll take that long?"

Shaking my head, I replied, "I sure hope not. But, with those two, it's impossible to tell. Anyway, where are we going to sleep, Magnus?"

Unsurprisingly, two twin bed frames appeared, followed shortly by mattresses, pillows and light blue sheets. At my look, he said defensively, "They're from large department stores. They won't even notice."

"And food?" Aspen inquired.

A refrigerator, microwave, table and two chairs appeared. Then so did a TV and couch. "If you get bored," he explained. On a whim, it seemed, he also manifested – well, more like stole – a foosball table , a bookshelf with about fifteen books, and two laptops.

I smiled warmly (there was no point in telling him he shouldn't steal). "Thanks, Magnus."

He shrugged. "It's no hassle. Besides, Alec convinced me to." And with that, he left.

I sat on the couch, which was one of those ones you see in home theaters that looked like an L. It was white. Grabbing the remote, I turned on the flat-screen TV mounted on the wall. Aspen sat next to me as I went to the guide. "Ooh, Covert Affairs, I like that show!" she exclaimed, so I turned it on. It was actually really good.

Not long after, though, there was a knock on the door. I answered; it was Simon. I smiled. "Hey, Simon. How'd it go?"

He laughed, stepping into the room. "Jace was really worried. He called me and said that you were five minutes late and told me to meet him at Taki's. Wait, this is an awesome place!"

"Yeah, Magnus gave us a bunch of stuff in case we get bored and/or have to be here for a month."

"Nice. Well, anyhow, I got Jace's reaction on tape. Don't ask how."

"Cool, I have a laptop." He looked confused. "Magnus."

"Oh."

We bought the laptop over to the couch and sat so we could all see it.

* * *

_Jace sat at the table, nervously tapping his fingers against his menu. Next to him was Alec, and across from them were Jaze and Simon. "I can't believe you let this happen!" Jace shouted at Jaze. "My girlfriend has been kidnapped!"_

_"Mine has, too, idiot!" Jaze yelled back. "And this is more your fault than mine!"_

_"How do you know they weren't just late?" Alec asked, always the reasonable one. _

_"We called them and their phones were off. They were on when we left."_

* * *

"So that worked," I noted. Simon and Aspen just nodded.

* * *

_"So, what are we going to do?" Simon asked. _

_"We'll look for them," Jace suggested, at the same time that Jaze said, "We'll ask people that were at the amusement park." They glared at each other. _

_"That's stupid," Jace said, "the people that are there now aren't necessarily the people that were there when Clary was kidnapped."_

_"Aspen was kidnapped, too," Jaze retorted through gritted teeth, "and it's a lot harder to look for them. New York is huge."_

_"But we have a lot of people to help."_

_"Not enough."_

_"We don't have enough people to ask everyone at the amusement park either."_

_"Look, I'm the more caring one and I have brilliant ideas." At that, Jace's anger was apparent on his face, but he kept quiet. "We should go with my plan."_

_"You aren't more caring, and we should go with my plan, because –"_

* * *

Simon pushed pause. "That's basically how the rest of it is, too."

Aspen sighed. "Maybe we will be here for a whole month."

**I'm getting quicker at updating! But that's because I'm getting more reviews. So tell me what you thought of this chapter. :)**


	10. considerate

**_Disclaimer: I have two missing keys on my keyboard. I'd be surprised if Cassandra Clare did, too, wouldn't you?_**

Every day, Simon, Isabelle, Alec, or Magnus brought over a video of Jace and Jaze's "progress".

The next time, it was Izzy. She didn't even bother to knock, barged in with the DVD and said, "Where's the laptop?"

I laughed. "Right there."

She stomped over to it and put in the DVD. "You aren't going to be happy with this."

* * *

_"So, what are we going to do? We need, to find them, now! They could be hurt, and unless a mundane kidnapped them, which I doubt, they probably don't have their steles!" Jaze yelled. They were in the Institute library, and books were strewn all over the place, some lying open, some upside down, and some looking like they were tossed aside in haste. _

_"You think I don't know that? I'm trying to come up with something. So shut up and let me think. You can go and … cry into your pillow or something." Jace retorted. His face was sunken in and his eyes weren't nearly as bright as usual. His hair was a complete mess. He was wearing wrinkled, dirty clothes. _

_Jaze didn't look much better._

_Then Alec walked in. "Any progress?"_

_The two other boys sighed. "No," they replied in unison, making sure to glare at each other immediately after._

_"Have you called anyone? Should I call Magnus?" Alec asked, sounding concerned. _

* * *

"He's a way better actor than I thought he'd be," I commented. Isabelle just looked at me.

* * *

_"Yeah, I think it's time to call him," Jace replied._

_"Why do you have contact with the High Warlock?" Jaze asked. Alec and Jace ignored him. _

_" 'Kay, I'll go do that now." And with that, he turned on his heel and left. _

_"Normally," Jaze muttered, "I'd be offended that you ignored me."_

_"But..?" Jace pried, glaring._

_"But, I realize that we maybe don't have time for you to be explaining things to me."_

* * *

"Well, that's progress," Aspen pointed out in a hopeful tone.

"Just wait," was Izzy's only reply.

* * *

_"Well, isn't that considerate?" Jace sneered. _

_"What are you saying? That I'm inconsiderate?"_

_"Wow, ya figured that out, huh?"_

_Jaze sputtered. "I don't know why I don't just punch you," he muttered. _

_"Maybe because you don't want to end up unconscious?" _

* * *

"Should I just stop there?" Izzy asked.

"NO!" Aspen and I yelled at the same time.

"Okay, just remember, you asked to see it."

**I know, this chapter is like a step backwards from the last one, length wise. Sorry. It just seemed like a good stopping spot, and I really wanted to update. Another thing I really wanna do is take time to thank anyone that's ever read, favorited, or especially reviewed this story. You guys are the best. Really. I just want to hug you all. **

**'Kay, and also, I want your opinions on something. I'm thinking about taking over this other person's submit your own character story. But, I know I can get kicked off the website for that. So, here's my question: If I put it on a different website, then put a link on my profile, would you guys read it and/or submit characters?**

**And people, even if you don't answer that question, review, yeah?**


	11. author's note please read

**_I am at a critical point in the next chapter of this story, where I can go one of two ways. I'd love it if you guys could help me, because I don't know which path I want to take with it._**

**_Option one: Jace and Jaze could get into a fight. Now, the problem with this is that I'm not a violent person so I might - okay, would - feel awkward writing it. Also, I'm not sure how good I'd be a writing a fight scene. _**

**_Option two: They don't get into a fight. The problem with this is that I feel like they've got all this pent up anger at each other and they need to get it out somehow. Besides, from what Isabelle said at the end of last chpater, it sounds like they should get into a fight, right? _**

**_Of course, they could get it out another way. What way, I'm unsure, but hey, if you have any ideas for that you could let me know._**

**_Alright, please let me know because I can't continue with the next chapter until I know which way to go with _****_it._**

**_You guys are the best! _**


	12. fun

_****__Disclaimer: While I hope to have a book published someday, I haven't yet. Cassandra Clare has. More proof that I am not her._

_And that, it seemed, was the end of the line for Jaze. He sent Jace a death glare and was just winding up for a punch, when Izzy walked in. Jaze didn't notice, and swung his fist at Jace anyway. But Jace, being Jace, was behind the other boy by the time he punch would've hit him. "You won't win this, my friend," Jace said._

_"I'd listen to him if I were you, Jaze. I mean, you might be able to take him, but… don't take your chances," Isabelle put in. _

_Jaze started. "Oh, I didn't see you there."_

_"I could tell."_

_"Isabelle," Jace sighed, "you're ruining my fun."_

_"Well, you shouldn't be having fun, you should be worried about Clary," the girl replied. "Have you made any progress in finding her?"_

_"Her and Aspen!" Jaze corrected. _

_Jace rolled his eyes before replying. "No, we haven't made any progress because stupid over there is too busy whining to help me think."_

_"I can take you down easy," the other boy declared, apparently offended by Jace's comment._

_Jace whirled around. "Yeah? Try me." The other boy held his hands up as if in surrender and just as Jace was turning back to Isabelle, he got in a good kick to Jace's back. Jace whirled around and punched his green-eyed lookalike, right in the stomach. There was an intake of breath from Jaze, but it has hardly noticeable before he swung his fist. Jace, however, had moved a foot to the left. "Still think you can beat me?"_

_Instead of responding directly, Jaze just kicked out at Jace's knees. Jace was too busy taunting him, so he collapsed. Of course, being Jace, he got right back up again, but apparently, this was too much for Isabelle. Her whip was around Jaze's legs before he could even blink. "Don't move," she warned, "or your legs will be out from under you before you can say Angel."_

**_Yeah, I know, this was agonizingly short. Like, "I've seen paragraphs longer than that" kind of short. I'm really sorry. But at least I updated, right? I could've made it longer, but then it would've probably taken me another week to update. Some inspiring words from my amazing readers might help to make the next one longer._**


	13. Chapter 13

**_Disclaimer: If I were Cassandra Clare, I wouldn't have to write fanfiction because I'd own the real thing. But I'm not her, and I don't own it, so here I am. _**

_He sighed in defeat. "Him, I could've beaten easily. But you and him? That would take energy I don't have at the moment."_

_Jace glared, but Isabelle unfurled her whip. "Can I leave you two children alone without having to worry about finding a body in an hour, or do I have to babysit?" _

_Jace's glare was turned on her, now. "Go, Isabelle." _

_She left._

"I didn't check the cameras for what happened after that," present-time Isabelle informed us. "But they were un-scarred and un-bruised the next day. They were also still arguing and hadn't seemed to come to any conclusions. So I figured what happened next wasn't worth seeing." With that, she took her DVD and left.

The next week or so went much the same – everyday someone would come over with a DVD, inform us that we wouldn't be pleased with what was on it, show us, and leave. And every day, Jace and Jaze looked even worse. I wondered how much sleep they were getting, but figured it probably wasn't much.

We were beginning to feel discouraged. "Maybe this plan won't work," Aspen sighed.

I shook my head. "It has to." But I wasn't really convinced of that, and it showed in my voice.

There was an urgent knock at the door. "Can I come in?" It was Simon's voice, and he sounded distressed.

"Yeah," I called.

The door opened, and in walked Simon, carrying the usual DVD, and something very unexpected. Jace, unconscious. . Behind him was Magnus (with blue sparks coming from his hands), and behind him was a floating, unconscious Jaze. Both the boys had bruises all over.

Aspen and I jumped up from our beds where we'd been sprawled. If my face mirrored hers, which I'm sure it did, Imust've looked extremely shocked and worried. "What happened?" I gasped.

Simon waved the DVD in the air, after carelessly dropping Jace on the couch. "See for yourself." He popped it into the laptop, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jaze being lowered onto a chair.

_Jace and Jaze were in the training room this time, which already explained a lot. They were both pacing. "We need to figure something out, we're running out of time," Jaze urged._

_"Wow, thanks," Jace replied sarcastically. "I didn't already know that."_

_Jaze glared. There was a short silence, then, "Well, what should we do?"_

_"Maybe if you could shut up for, say, two seconds, I could come up with something!" Jace shouted. _

_"Oh, like you're going to be the one to finally come up with a plan."_

_"If I'm not, then why do you keep asking me what to do?"_

_"To prove that you have the mind of a prairie dog and couldn't come up with a decent plan to save your life, let alone someone else's."_

_That did it for Jace, and you didn't have to know him well to notice. His whole body tensed, his fists clenched at his sides, and he gritted his teeth while glaring daggers at Jaze. "Saving Clary's life is a hundred times more important to me than saving my own."_

I couldn't help but smile. "Aw," I said.

"Shut up," everyone else yelled.

_"Really? Because you're not doing a very good job of it. If that's true, and it were your life on the line, you'd've been dead a long time ago." _

_Jace lunged, pure hatred written on his face. Jaze tried to side step it, but Jace was too fast for him. They both tumbled to the floor. For a while all I could see was a blur of punches and kicks. Then Jace broke away and stood crouched, in a sort of 'bring-it-on' stance, with his back to the camera. _

_Jaze hastily stood up. "Finished, Jace?" _

_A growl came from Jace, then he was running. When he got about halfway to Jaze, he passed out._

_Jaze laughed hysterically for about five seconds before passing out as well. _

"That happened about two hours ago, but we didn't know until Isabelle went in there to check on them ten minutes ago," Simon informed us. "This was the first time we've seen the video, too; we came straight here when Izzy called us and gave us the video."

"But why did you bring them with you?" Aspen wanted to know.

"Well, Izzy didn't want two unconscious bodies in the training room, and we didn't know what else to do with them," my best friend explained.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. "Okay, this isn't good, but maybe you should get them out of here before –"

I was cut off by the sound of someone moving around. We all looked toward the couch, where the sound had come from. Jace was sitting up, awake and blinking. "What happened? Where am I?" He was talking to no one in particular; he hadn't seen us yet. Aspen and I exchanged glances and were ducking down to hide under the beds when Jace finally looked our direction. His eyes widened. "Clary?"

**Okay, guys, I was a little disappointed in the review turn-out of the last chapter. But I guess I can't really blame you because you were probably a little disappointed in the last chapter itself. I probably would've posted sooner with more reviews, but hey, ya can't change the past, right? So, when I was struck by sudden inspiration with this today, I typed it up and now I'm posting it. Hopefully, it's a lot better than the last one. I think it is. But why don't you tell me what you think by reviewing. (A review makes my day, and a really good review makes my week.) Also, does anyone have suggestions for the chapter title? I couldn't think of one.**


	14. Chapter 14

**_Disclaimer: I think that one word speaks for itself._**

I smiled sheepishly. "Hi, Jace."

He blinked a few times as if making sure he wasn't hallucinating, then jumped up from the couch and came running toward me. He grabbed me by the arms and turned me around, then turned me back to face him. "You're not hurt?"

I glanced at Aspen as if to ask 'should I fake being hurt?'; she shrugged. "I'm fine," I told my boyfriend. I didn't want him to worry anymore, he looked horrible and sick because of it. Besides, I figured there was no sense in pretending now that they were here.

He breathed a sigh of relief, then finally seemed to remember that he'd woken up in a strange place, and that there were people there other than the two of us. He looked toward Simon and Magnus. "Why are you two here?"

They were saved from having to answer by Jaze waking up. "What happened? Where am I?" He asked, once again managing to somehow repeat Jace verbatim. And, just like Jace, his eyes widened when he looked over in our direction. "Aspen?"

She waved, her face looking apologetic.

"Are you okay?" he asked, concerned. He came toward her slowly, as if he were approaching a wild animal and trying not to scare it.

She nodded. "I'm okay, Jaze."

He looked skeptical. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. And you can walk faster than that."

He smiled, apparently now convinced that she was alright.

Jace cleared his throat. "No one has answered my question yet."

Simon, Aspen, Magnus, and I shared a glance. "Should we tell them?" Simon asked.

The rest of us shrugged.

"Tell us what?" Jaze asked.

"Clary, you must explain. It was your idea." This was Magnus.

I took a deep breath. "We were never really kidnapped."

Jace and Jaze both looked like bugs, their eyes were so wide. "Then what happened?" Jace asked, probably trying not to sound confused or angry, but failing miserably.

"We faked it. We were here the whole time."

"And where is here, exactly?" Jace wanted to know.

"Magnus's spare apartment."

"Why would you fake your own kidnapping?" Jaze asked.

Aspen answered for me. "We thought it would force you two to work together."

"Well, that plan backfired on you, didn't it?" Jace sneered.

I sighed. "Jace, we didn't mean to make you mad. If it helps, we were going to tell you what we were doing. After you came up with a plan together, I mean." Okay, so maybe that last part wasn't exactly true, but I was trying to calm Jace down!

"No, Clary, it doesn't help." He said my name the way he'd said the word 'sis' all those years ago when we'd thought we were related. I felt my eyes start to tear up.

"Jaze," Aspen said pleadingly, "you're not angry, are you?"

"No, would you be mad at me if I faked a kidnapping and made you worry yourself sick for no real reason?"

"You guys," I said, practically begging now. "It really wasn't a malicious act! We were trying to help you!"

"It doesn't matter," Jace told me. "Do you remember, near the time when we first met, we were at Madame Dorothy's? I said I hated bergamot and cucumbers, and you asked me what else I hate, and I said liars. You lied, Clary. You lied to us."

Tears poured out of my eyes. I didn't know how he remembered that so vividly, but I remembered it too, now that he'd brought it up. I sunk back down onto the bed, feeling like all the air had been sucked out of my lungs.

"He's right," Jaze said. "You guys lied to us. I hardly even know you anymore, Aspen."

And then she was crying too. "Please," she gasped.

"No. You know what, I need to leave before I hurt someone." And with that Jaze stormed out of the room.

With a final look at me, Jace followed.

"Well," Simon said, "at least they're agreeing."

**AH! I almost cried while writing this! I'm sorry, but it had to be done. And at least we have Simon, to lighten the mood a bit, yes? I promise that there will be more Clace by the end of the story, I couldn't keep them apart if I tried. But anyway, review? Tell me how angry you are that I split them up?**


	15. Chapter 15

**_Disclaimer: I'm running out of creative things to say here. Does anyone even read these? I don't own it. Purple kilts. _**

"He's right," Magnus pointed out. "You got what you wanted."

"N-Not if this is w-what it takes! I-I'd rather listen to them argue a-and insult each other," I gasped between sobs.

Magnus gave a sympathetic look. "Darling, you should have considered that earlier."

I collapsed into a laying position, my face buried in the pillow. Almost instantly, like the pillow had some kind of trigger, my phone rang. I didn't even bother to lift my head before speaking. "Simon, can you get that?"

I heard a sigh, and then the phone silenced mid-ring. "Hello?" Simon said. "Isabelle? … He found out. … Yes, that's why he's mad. … True. … She's upset. … Sobbing. … I don't know. … Isabelle – … Okay, fine!" I heard the phone close. "Isabelle is coming, and I quote, 'whether you like it or not.'"

I sat up, wiping at my eyes. "Okay."

There was an awkward silence the whole five minutes it took for the door to burst open. "I brought ice cream," Izzy declared, handing me a pint of chocolate.

I laughed a little, without much meaning in it. "Thanks, Iz."

"It's no problem. Do you want to tell me what happened?"

I shook my head. "Not really."

"Tell me anyway." That got a small smile out of me; it was so typical Isabelle.

I did tell her, and her expression got increasingly more sad as I kept talking. When I was finished, she became determined. "We're going to fix this."

"How?" I nearly sobbed.

She grinned. "I'll think of something."

The whole time, Aspen just sat there, a silent waterfall flowing from her eyes.

Izzy didn't think of anything. At least not immediately. About a week passed, and Aspen and I stayed in Magnus's spare apartment still. We didn't want the pain of being in the same building as Jace & Jaze and having them be angry with us. Basically, we moped, and ate ice cream. Cliché, I know.

Then Isabelle burst through the door, unannounced as usual. "I've got it!"

"Got what?" I asked sullenly, not really caring what she had.

"I figured out how to get Jace to forgive you!"

**Another chapter! Yay! Hmm... so, I know it's short; I'm sorry. It just seemed like a nice cliffy spot. **

**OH! So, you know that Submit Your Own Character story I asked you guys about? I posted it on quizilla! Can you guys please submit people? No one on that website has even looked at it. And I need characters. You can send me the form as a PM using this site. Please? Pretty please? With a cherry on top? Or, if you don't like cherries, with a whatever-you-want on top?**

**And review? Please? Pretty please? With a whatever-you-want on top? (Whatever you want can be a cherry, too, ya know.)**


	16. Chapter 16

**_Disclaimer: I went to a homecoming dance last night. Unless I'm mistaken, Cassandra Clare did not. So, I'm not her and don't own the characters, besides Aspen & Jaze._**

I sat up, daring to show some hope. "How?"

Isabelle grinned.

Just as she opened her mouth to speak, though, the door burst open and in rushed Jace. He seemed flustered, and he didn't look much better than last time.

I jumped out of my bed. "Jace?"

He nodded, like I'd really been wondering if it was him. "Clary, I'm sorry," he said.

"You're sorry? For what?" I asked, genuinely confused.

"I overreacted. You did lie, and you shouldn't have, and it still bothers me, but I can't live without you, Clary. I forgive you. Will you forgive me?"

"I was never mad!"

And then he was right in front of me, and he was kissing me or I was kissing him, I didn't know. And I didn't care. All that mattered was that everything was okay between us again. Or, at least it would be.

But what about Jaze & Aspen? I pulled back, glancing at the other, temporarily forgotten girl. "What about them?" I whispered to Jace.

He sighed, looking sad. "He's still too angry. Though," he brightened a little, "you'll be happy to hear that we get along now."

I laughed. "Why now?"

Jace shrugged. "The tragedy of being betrayed brought us together?" he offered.

I sighed. "I'm sorry, Jace."

He hugged me. "I know."

**Sorry about the wait. I wish I had a good excuse, but I don't. I lost motivation for this story for a while, and that's basically the only reason this has taken me so long. But I have it done now! ("It" being this chapter, not the whole story.) So tell me what you thought?**


	17. Chapter 17

**_Disclaimer: I have to take finals this coming week. Cassandra Clare, if I'm not mistaken, is out of school and doesn't have to deal with that aymore. See how I'm not her?_**

I smiled. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

"Hello? I'm still here." This came from Aspen.

I sighed again, sitting back down. "Let me think."

Isabelle spoke up. "I'm still here, too, you know. And I've got an idea."

Jace sat next to me. "Care to share with the class?"

Izzy rolled her eyes. "Aspen needs to make Jaze jealous."

The girl in question shook her head violently. "No, I couldn't flirt with another guy if I tried. And I wouldn't try. It'd be awkward."

"Then Jace & Clary are going to have to make him jealous."

"Wait, we're what?" I asked.

"Going to make him jealous." She sighed. "You have no idea what I'm talking about, do you?"

I shook my head.

"When you're around him, just be… sickeningly in love. Show him what he's missing. It shouldn't be hard."

Jace kissed me. "No," he agreed. "It shouldn't."

We walked into the institute about 20 minutes later, hand-in-hand and laughing a little too loud.

Jace lead me into the kitchen, where he'd left Jaze earlier. As we stepped into the room, he sighed contentedly. "It's so good to have you back."

I giggled theatrically. "It's good to be back."

Jace leaned down and kissed me, and I didn't even think as I tangled my fingers in his hair. He heard someone clear their throat, and broke apart. Jaze was glaring at us from his place at the table. "I'm eating," he informed us.

Jace laughed good-naturedly. "I'm just really happy I went over there," he said as he rummaged through the fridge and grabbed some cheese slices. He looked at me. "Cheese sandwiches."

I smiled. "Are we going to eat them in the greenhouse?"

Jace grinned. "Maybe. We can recreate your 16th birthday."

"I'd love that," I said, and silently added, _only up until right before Simon comes out of my bedroom, that is. _

We kissed as Isabelle walked into the room. She smiled. "Aren't they adorable, Jaze?"

He grunted. "Whatever."

**So... now is when I typically write out an apology for taking so long. However, I always take that long, so you guys probably expect it by now, don't you? It's not really I good thing, but it's the truth. And I am sorry, but I just have a hard time updating in a timely manner. Would you be so kind as to review anyway? Please?**


	18. Chapter 18

**_PLEASE READ!_  
**

**Okay, sorry. I know you hate these. I do to. But I've noticed that I have a whole lot of them in this story. (I'm also sorry for not titling it A/N, but I know a lot of people wouldn't read this chapter if I titled it that.)**

** Here's the reason for this Author's Note. I'm thinking I might drop this story. Even if I do drop it officially, I'll still finish it. So, if there are a few people that really want to read it, I can send it to them over DocX. But, it probably won't be as good as if I know that a bunch of people will read it. And it'll take a long time. (That happens anyway, though.)**

**So, here's the deal:**

**If I get four or less people asking me to keep the story, I'll just switch to DocX. It just feels like less pressure, and for that little number of people, posting to the actual Mortal Instruments archive feels like I'd just be taking up space.**

**If I get between five and seven people asking me to keep it, I'll consider keeping it. I'll probably still switch to DocX, but that's enough people to at least deter me a tiny bit. With this, it would really depend on what you say.**

**If I get eight or more, I'll keep it, no question. The most reviews I've ever gotten on a chapter is seven, so if I got more than that on this "chapter," that'll really mean a lot to me. **


	19. Chapter 19

_**Disclaimer: Is Cassandra Clare going to choir camp on Sunday? I think not.**_

Isabelle rolled her eyes. "Come on, you know you're jealous."

He shrugged.

Jace & I were oblivious to this. Holding hands, we made our way out of the kitchen and into the greenhouse. Jace found the exact spot we had been sitting on my sixteenth birthday and sat there. I sat across from him. We were quiet for a while, just happy to be with each other again. After a while, I sighed. "Jace, we can't recreate my sixteenth birthday."

He looked puzzled. "Why not?"

"On my sixteenth birthday, we talked about things that we already know about each other now. Not to mention, it's not nighttime now. So we can't watch that flower bloom."

"None of that matters. It's not what we talked about that's important."

"Then what is important?"

He grinned, and before I knew it, he was kissing me. My hands found his hair of their own accord, as they usually did when we kissed. I lost all sense of where I was and why; all that mattered was Jace, and that moment.

Or course, all good things must come to an end, and I heard soft footsteps behind me. Jace pulled back, grinning again, and said, "Don't panic, but we've got an audience."

I laughed, but didn't move any further away from him. "Hello, Isabelle. Hi, Jaze."

"Aw, you heard us," Izzy whined, even though we all knew that if she'd really wanted to sneak up on us, she could have.

"Yeah, we heard you."

Laughing, Isabelle walked over to us, Jaze in tow. She sat down across from us, casually, as if she wasn't interrupting anything at all. Finally resigned to the fact that she wasn't going to leave us alone anytime soon, I shifted positions so that instead of facing Jace, I was leaning back against him. His arm went around my waist automatically, and our hands entangled themselves. Jaze sat awkwardly nest to Izzy.

"So, how're the lovebirds doing?" Isabelle asked teasingly.

"Quite well," Jace replied. "Or, we were, until you got here."

Isabelle hit him playfully. (Though Isabelle's playful punches are more painful than most people's real ones, Jace, of course, showed no sign of this.)

So," Jaze interrupted, "what're we doing here, Isabelle?"

"Spying, of course."

"They know we're here. That's not spying."

"Sure it is."

Jace cleared his throat.

"We are still here, you know." I said.

She laughed. "Okay, fine, we'll go." Standing up, she motioned for Jaze to follow. The sound of footsteps stopped much earlier than it should have if they were really leaving, and then some plants rustled. But that was okay, as long as we had some semblance of privacy, we didn't care.

**Oh my god, you guys are amazing. I got _six__teen_ reviews on the last chapter! That's... incredible. That's more than double the maximum amount I'd gotten before that! I had no idea that that many people cared. So thank you, a million times thank you. Unfortunately, this is the best I could come up with for this chapter. Thoughts?  
**


	20. Chapter 20

_**Disclaimer: Is Cassandra Clare going to a used bookstore tomorrow? Okay, bad example. She totally might be. Point is, I'm not her and don't claim to be.**_

"Where were we?" Jace asked, meeting my eyes and placing his hand under my chin to tilt my head up for a kiss.

I pulled back; there was exhaustion evident in his face. "Jace, are you okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"You look tired."

He sighed. "I haven't really been sleeping too well."

My eyes dropped to the floor. "I really am sorry. I didn't know how much it would affect you."

"I know. It's alright, I forgive you."

"But Jace, it isn't alright! You've lost sleep over it!"

"But now you're back, so I'm able to sleep again."

"But -"

"No."

"I just -"

He shook his head.

"Jace, I-"

He put his finger to my mouth. "Clary, listen. I swear on the Angel that I've already forgiven you. I love you, and I will love you until I die, and if there's a life after that, I'll love you then. Nothing can change that."

I nodded, tears pricking at my eyes. Just as Jace's lips met mine, there was a rustling from the bushes and we pulled apart, startled. I'd forgotten that there was anyone there, and it seemed Jace had too.

We looked over to see Jaze standing up behind one of the bushes. His expression was torn between realization and franticness. "Sorry," he said to us, before turning and running out of the room.

A few seconds after he was gone, Isabelle popped up from behind another bush. Grinning, she declared, "mission accomplished," turned on her heel, and walked out of the greenhouse.

I leaned my head back against Jace's shoulder and looked up at him. "That didn't take long."

"If he loves her half as much as I love you, then that isn't surprising."

I smiled.

**Oh my god, I am an awful awful awful awful AWFUL person, and I am so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so SO very very VERY sorry. I can't even believe I haven't updates since June! It doesn't seem like that long ago to me, but wow. Okay, I'm so sorry. I wanted this chapter to be extra long, but it wasn't really flowing, and then I realized that it had been six months, and I decided to update right away with what I have! Which, granted, isn't much. But it's better than nothing! Right? Right? Sorry. So sorry. Can I still ask you to review, though? Pretty please? It'd make my day. And hopefully motivate me to write more. **


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